New Bedford, like many other urban communities, has a high incidence of depression and suicide. One of our missions at DrugFreeNB is to prevent the potentially tragic outcomes of depression.

Understanding
Suicide

Although some people
may perceive suicide as the act of a troubled person, it is a complex outcome
that is influenced by many factors. Individual
characteristics may be important, but so are relationships with family, peers
and others, and influences from the broader social, cultural, economic and
physical environments.

There is no single path
that will lead to suicide. Rather, throughout life, a combination of factors,
such as a serious mental illness, alcohol abuse, a painful loss, exposure to
violence, or social isolation may increase the risk of suicidal thoughts and
behaviors.

Key
Facts (taken from the 2012 National Strategy for Suicide Prevention):

Suicide is the 10th leading
cause of death, claiming more than twice as many lives each year as does
homicide

On average, between 2001 and 2009, more
than 33,000 Americans died each year as a result of suicide, which is more than
1 person every 15 minutes

To
learn more about suicide and to get help, consider the follow resources:

In
a crisis contact:

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline

1-800-273-TALK
(8255)

TTY:
1-800-799-4TTY (4889)

A
24-hour, toll-free crisis hotline that links callers to a nearby crisis center.

The Massachusetts Coalition for Suicide Prevention (MCSP) is a broad based inclusive alliance of suicide prevention advocates, including public and private agency representatives, policy makers, suicide survivors, mental health and public health consumers and providers and concerned citizens committed to working together to reduce the incidence of self-harm and suicide in the Commonwealth.